MEGHAN Markle and Prince Harry are always trying to grab the spotlight, according to a royal expert.
Outspoken royal author Tom Bower spoke on The Sun’s Royal Exclusive program and used the example of the Sussexes’ “paparazzi car chase” in New York last May.
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The royal couple claimed they were involved in a “car chase” with paparazzi in New York – which reportedly lasted “more than two hours”.
However, police officers and a taxi driver dismissed the claims, calling them “exaggerated”.
Tom told The Sun’s royal editor Matt Wilkinson that the Sussexes’ reputation has been negatively affected in recent years, and celebrities like the Beckhams are distancing themselves.
He stated, “Well, right now, if you’re an American, you get very little from being next for people who are the target of so much criticism.
“I don’t think they can resolve it, the momentum is either upward or downward.
“If they completely disappear from view, they will lose credibility, they will lose value, they will lose value, and if they are in public like the Tillman Award or other awards she received or that ridiculous trip to New York where she was rumored to be chased by the paparazzi, they can only lose .”
The Duke of Sussex was recently honored with the Pat Tillman Award for Service at the 2024 ESPYS – despite a former military chief urging him to turn it down.
According to ESPN, the Pat Tillman Service Award is “given to a person with a strong connection to the sport who has served others in a way that echoes the legacy of former NFL player and U.S. Army Ranger Pat Tillman.”
Pat’s mother, Mary, has previously criticized the Duke, saying there are others “much better suited” and with less “privilege” who could win the gong.
Tom said the couple – who stepped down from royal duties in 2020 – “no longer have any credibility”, whether in Britain or across the pond.
He continued: “There is no doubt that the Sussexes have alienated a large number of people, not only in Britain, especially in Great Britain, but now also in California.
“They want to be aligned with famous people to improve their own status.
“And they are finding more and more people turning away from them.
“Because in America they are much, much more transactional than in Britain.
The ‘rift’ between the Beckhams and the Sussexes
THE Beckhams and Sussexes have enjoyed a close friendship over the years, but fissures have emerged in recent years.
The Duke of Sussex reportedly called David to accuse him and his wife Victoria of leaking stories, leaving David ‘furious’.
David was also “snubbed” by Harry after flying 22 hours from London to Sydney at the royal request for the 2018 Invictus Games.
Cracks began to appear in the couple’s friendship in spring 2022, when the former football player invited Prince William and Kate to his son Brooklyn’s wedding – not Harry and Meghan.
At the time, a source said: “David’s attachment and history goes back to William and Kate and they have a very strong relationship and it was their choice as wedding guests.
“It was always about them, it was never about Meghan and Harry.
“They are the people that David and Victoria are connected to and it has always been about them because they have a long history together.”
And perhaps it wasn’t a coincidence that, following the apparent snub, Meghan apparently stopped wearing Victoria’s designs — while Kate wore them more often.
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“You know, what do I get from being there for Meghan and Harry?”
Since stepping down as working royals, the couple have done a series of high-profile interviews about their family, including their bombshell chat with Oprah Winfrey.
Prince Harry later released his controversial biography Spare and his Harry & Meghan Netflix documentarywho criticized the royal family.
In a statement following the “paparazzi car chase,” Meghan and Harry’s spokesperson called it a “relentless pursuit” that could have been “catastrophic.”
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But American law enforcement sources told ABC News that they only had 20 minutes of interaction with Harry and Meghan.
This appears to be at odds with the Sussexes’ statement, which stated that the incident lasted two hours.
However, it could be that Harry and Meghan did not interact with the police during the entire incident.
NYPD sources also told the outlet that the footage they have reviewed so far does not show the kind of almost “catastrophic” behavior in his statement.
A Timeline of Prince Harry’s Family Feud
IN 2018, the Sun told how “simmering tension
The first signs of friction emerged after William was introduced to Meghan when she was staying at Kensington Palace.
Once she returned home to Canada, William and Harry sat down for a sibling chat.
He knew Harry was already crazy about her, but it was claimed he advised him to take it slow.
The younger prince reportedly didn’t take the advice very well, with a royal source saying he “went crazy.”
Then, in June 2019, Harry and Meghan officially split from the charity they shared with William and Kate.
The Royal Foundation will be split between the Sussexes and the Cambridges, while the couples focus on their own separate charitable efforts.
Prince William and Prince Harry first established the Royal Foundation in 2009, before Kate joined two years later, shortly after their engagement was announced.
The trio often appeared together at events and the Foundation has had huge success with projects such as the Invictus Games for injured veterans and the Heads Together mental health campaign.
The Royal Foundation said the decision was made after completing a review of its structure – but added that the two couples would continue to work together in the future.
Harry and Meg lived near Kate and Wills on the Kensington Palace estate, but moved to Frogmore Cottage in Windsor before baby Archie was born.
The move further fueled rumors of a fallout.
Harry also hinted in his ITV documentary “Harry and Meghan, An African Journey” that he and his brother had grown apart.
In 2021, Harry and Meghan gave their bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey, where Harry accused his father of holding him back financially.
Harry then flew back to the UK to join William in unveiling a statue of his mother, Princess Diana, in the grounds of Kensington Palace. But sources said William did not want to attend the memorial amid the fallout.
In 2022, shortly before the death of her grandmother, the Queen, sources claimed that Kate acts as a “peacemaker” between the siblings.
Harry claimed his brother “knocked him to the ground” during an argument about Meghan, in his memoir.
In Spare, Harry said William labeled Meghan “rude” and “difficult” during a fight.
Harry claimed that William “grabbed me by the collar, ripping my necklace, and…knocked me to the ground.”
He said he was left with a visible injury to his back after the 2019 argument at Nottingham Cottage, in the grounds of Kensington Palace, where he lived at the time.
In January this year, Harry flew to be with Charles following the shock of the monarch’s cancer diagnosis.
Harry flew back to the US the next day – without seeing Wills.
In May, he visited the United Kingdom for a three-day visit without seeing King Charles or Prince William.
Meanwhile, a high-ranking police source told the New York Post Office that there were “no crash reports or 911 calls” and that the hunt “it was definitely not two hours.”
The couple was at Grande Litter to an Ms Foundation gala, where Meghan was presented with the 2023 Women of Vision Award.
They entered and left the place publicly allowing photos.
The taxi driver who took Harry and Meghan on part of their trip recounted his experience, adding that he did not feel he was in danger at any point.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
